2023 Emmys Craft Preview: Will Returning Series Affect Competition?

Several heavyweight series are returning this spring that will have a big impact on the 2023 Emmy craft races, notably “Succession,” “Barry,” “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” “Star Trek: Picard” and the final with seasons. possibly ‘Ted Lasso’. Plus, “The Mandalorian” is back and should continue its craft reign, while “Yellowjackets,” “The Great,” “Schmigadoon!” and the development of new seasons of “Perry Mason” is also possible.

Before looking ahead to the possibilities, it’s worth noting past Emmy performances.

“The Mandalorian” has set a new standard of excellence as Disney+’s “Star Wars” crown jewel. Over two seasons of ILM’s revolutionary StageCraft virtual production platform Volume, the sci-fi bounty hunter series starring Pedro Pascal won 14 craft wins in cinematography, VFX, score, sound mixing, stunt coordination, production design, prosthetic make-up and stunt. performance.

“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” (Amazon Prime Video), a period comedy-drama about the titular stand-up (Rachel Brosnahan), collected 10 Craft Emmys over four seasons for music supervision, cinematography, costumes, makeup, hairstyling, editing . , sound mixing. But after last season’s disappointing eight craft nominations and just one win, he’s looking to bounce back.

“Barry” (HBO), the dark comedy about the titular aspiring assassin-turned-actor (star and co-creator Bill Hader), won six craft Emmys over three seasons, including two for sound editing and mixing and one. each for editing and stunt coordination.

Courtesy of Macall B. Polay/HBO

“Ted Lasso” (Apple TV+), the comedy-drama (starring and co-written by Jason Sudeikis) about an American football coach in Britain, scored two craft wins (editing and sound mixing) in its first season but came home empty-handed. It was awarded out of six nominations from Season 2. But “Succession” (HBO), the reigning winner for Outstanding Drama Series about the unconventional Roy media conglomerate clan, won only two craft Emmys, for its theme music and editing. .

Similarly, “Perry Mason” (HBO) and “Yellowjackets” (Showtime) had rough debuts, with the legal thriller starring Matthew Rhys earning just two craft nominations (cinematography and production design), while the cannibal. didn’t get a thriller.

“The Mandalorian” mixes it up in Season 3

With the reunited Din Djarin/Mando (Pascal) and Grugu (Baby Yoda) taking on greater responsibility for protecting the scattered and divided Mandalorians, creator Jon Favreau has pushed for a greater visual scale, pushing the production further beyond the boundaries of StageCraft Volume. Seasons 1 and 2 were ideally suited to pioneer new technology, but as Season 3 shifted the story towards non-volume-friendly lighting environments, Favreau and the ILM team had to go with more traditional location and set-based shots.

So, while there are good prospects for craft dominance again, the only area of ​​improvement is production design, where it fell short last time. But thanks to the more complex and visually arresting environments—such as Din’s ruined desert planet Mandalore—production designers Doug Chiang (also Lucasfilm’s executive creative director) and Andrew Jones, who built the physical sets, should be the frontrunners.

“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” will be Trippy in the Season 5 finale

After a disappointing season 4, creator Amy Sherman-Palladino wraps up Maisel’s story in a wild, time-bending way, going back to the 50s and jumping forward to the 70s and 80s while staying firmly in the 60s . This means more contemporary visual and musical touches for the Emmy-winning craft team, which could end well, especially for cinematographer M. David Mullen, music supervisor Robin Urdang, composers Thomas Mizer and Curtis Moore, and costume designer Donna Zakowska (who has been working since season two did not win), and production designer Bill Groom, who was nominated four times without winning.

“Barry” behind bars in the season 4 finale

The mask is off Barry (Hader). Last season ended with him imprisoned for his crimes as an assassin, and now he must try to end his torment and find redemption. That’s a lot of emotional baggage for an aspiring actor to draw from. Editing, audio editing and mixing, and stunt coordination are obviously back in play, but there’s one last chance to break out of another category. Maybe the stunt coordination given the prison conditions? Or the production design, given the juggling of all the locations, including those connected to the Hollywood story.

“Ted Lasso” faces a reckoning in what could be his final season

Official or not, it appears to be the end of Ted Lasso’s (Sudeikis) streak. The easy-going, optimistic American football coach suddenly feels stuck in London due to unresolved personal issues. There was apparently a lot of soul-searching during the two-year hiatus between seasons 2 and 3, resulting in this existential crisis that now needs to be resolved. Such as “Mrs. Maisel,” “Ted Lasso” is coming off a disappointing Emmy season. But the crappy underwhelming dynamic that defined Season 1 could see him return to form with two more wins in editing and sound mixing.

Courtesy of Colin Hutton / Apple TV+

Could ‘Succession’ Generate More Craft Awards in Season 4?

Everything is turned upside down in the minds of the Roy family in creator Jesse Armstrong’s Shakespearean tragedy, in which billions are at stake. As IndieWire’s Ben Travers writes, the season is “here to destroy you.” And in due course, it will be a culmination of macro-financial maneuvers and micro blood vendettas. But in terms of craft, does it do more to honor the TV Academy’s most prestigious drama than just cutting Bill Henry? Nicholas Britell’s brilliantly experimental score, a combination of classical and hip-hop, is worthy of evoking the uncertainty of power. And indeed, Stephen H. Carter’s production and Michelle Matland’s costuming should be in the mix, even though it was understated.

“Star Trek: Picard” returns to the ’90s in Season 3

In its final season, “Picard” is looking forward, not back, as IndieWire’s Christian Blauvelt notes. Still, showrunner Terry Matalas reunites Picard (Stewart) with the former Enterprise crew from “The Next Generation” in a very cohesive way. This meant finding stylistic continuity with the ’90s series ‘The Next Generation’, ‘Deep Space Nine’ and ‘Voyager’. So they brought back Denise and Michael Okuda, the production designers on these shows. Look for them in the craft mix for their work on the USS Titan. Additionally, VFX was unique in the evolving elements of 90s shows. They brought back the Changelings who were the villains of Deep Space Nine. Amanda Plummer plays Vadico, but the morphological effect is much better through a fusion of physical makeup and VFX.

“Schmigadoon!” Goes Fosse in season 2

“Schmigadoon” Season 2 returns Josh (Keegan-Michael Key) and Melissa (Cecily Strong) to the modern world, but they long for their magical “Brigadoon” adventure. But now creators Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio are creating a “Schmicago” setting inspired in part by Bob Fosse’s “Chicago.” In addition to being in the running for Outstanding Original Score and Lyrics again, the team may be able to move forward with Bo Welch’s production, Christopher Willis’ score, and Christopher Gattelli’s choreography.

Courtesy of Apple

“The Great” gained momentum in Season 3

After finally breaking through with a costume win in Season 2, “The Great” offers greater craftsmanship in Season 3 thanks to Sharon Long’s production design and Nathan Barr’s score. This season, everything is about the court, as Katalin (Fanning) and her husband, III. Péter (Nicholas Hoult) try to screw their marriage together.

“Perry Mason” will appear in Season 2

The legal thriller returns to Los Angeles in the ’30s with some tweaks to further explore Mason’s (Rhys) new legal career and take on the corrupt system. Jack Amiel and Michael Begler (“The Knick”) are the new showrunners, and while the show is still gritty noir, it’s more accessible in its storytelling. That’s why the new cinematographer (Darran Tiernan) and production designer (Keith Cunningham) look different. Tiernan gets a little brighter and warmer and more subjective in his cinematography, while Cunningham continues to convey the contrasts between the haves and the have-nots. This could be a breakout Emmy season.

“Yellowjackets” ups the ante in Season 2

The arrival of winter in the cannibal era is a stark contrast to “Yellowjackets” Season 1 for the soccer players trapped in the wilderness. Creators Ashley Lyle and Bart Nickerson make everything snow in the past, while the present offers a creepy cult/wellness mix for adults. The problem of snow was a serious challenge for production designer Margot Ready. Maybe that extra dimension will lead to a craft Emmy nomination for Ready.

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